Ok, on odd fixations for the night, i remembered an old OLD post on travel chopsticks (dan actually even bought them)… and they were silly and complex? As shade elaine and i wonder… they aren’t really that much lighter, or take up that much less space… why do you need them? where are you bringing them? Well… i googled travel chopsticks and we were the first hit… so i browsed more, and apparently the travel chopstick options have come a long way! So below are 6 awesome options i’ve found to meet your travel chopstick needs. Trust me, they are quite impressive design objects… esp for such a simple instrument.

Hermes SilkyPop bag is a new take on their classic silk scarves and those “fold up into the tiniest pouch imaginable” shopping bags. At a mere 700 euros a piece, these bags zip into a gorgeous little leather pouch, and are quite the beach bag for the summer. Also, how adorable are their sketches to go with?

The Poor Light is a brilliant project by Poor.nl - which is “a module - pictogram accompanying the design, appears in various situations, emphasizing the places where the light, though present, is not encased within the frames of the object used to lighten the given area.” The result is a set of options ranging from the Lamp ScreenSaver, Lamp made of glow in the dark stars, and black cloth cut outs… (via Moco Loco)

Swiss Glamour Camping kit - Urban Decay meets Paul Frank. Stop. Thats a lot of oxymorons visually and conceptually. On top of the cheeky emergency travel bag and Paul Frank sunglasses, there is apparently over $125 of Urban Decay make up goodies in there as well. There is a removable lamb mirror, hardcase for the sunglasses, zip off pouch, brush slots, and even a travel hook… for um… in your tent. Fun gift, it’ll set you back $299.

Bubblescope… bringing the 360 degree omni cam into the hands of any and everyone! This on brings me back to my UCSD HCI Lab days, where we had our omnicam strapped to the top of Infiniti Q45, capturing 360 degree video data of subjects’ drives… which were then used to process lane changes, driving behaviors, etc etc… fascinating stuff, naturally i was amused with watching the circular video footage both in circle form and after you stretch them back to normal.

But enough about that, the Bubblescope!= was over on Josh Spear and i hadn’t had time to write about it until now (with all that iphone madness and what not)… Tom Lawton is turning this into a water bottle looking camera for everyone. Now we can ALL take 360 view images… its especially fun indoors as well as capturing vast expanses of fields, etc… really fun way to completely change your perspective of a space. Point and shoot panorama’s anyone?

For only $500? That’s cheaper than my iPhone that i’m considering returning! Just noticed this URBN Trick My Sofa on BLTD. And this fun little couch not only matches my bigger couch, but has adjustable arms! So you can totally make it the perfect little office couch for friends to crash on. Add this to my list of current cravings, and things i can totally buy if i return the iPhone.

Bowflex SelectTech popped up on Uncrate, and while this isn’t usually the type of thing that catches my attention… their “dial a weight” system really is pretty efficient and does seem much easier than readjusting by manually adding and subtracting weights. Design wise, they are certainly the opposite end of the spectrum from those nice super minimalist nike weights… but i am certainly curious to play with these and see how their dialing mechanism works, and how secure it feels the way the weights are latched on. There are three sets, one with weights going up to 20 lbs, second goes up to 52.5 lbs, and the largest one for the hardcore weight trainer goes up to 90 lbs!

We interrupt the iPhone madness with this roundup of NotCouture to remind you that there are other covetable things out there! And it’s nice to see more guys posting! Here are some recent favorites. Obviously, top row is guys’ stuff, bottom row is for the ladies.

Ok ok, so perhaps you’re sick of the iPhone by now, or you’re just starting to fall deeply madly in love with it, but either way… i was just playing around with the iPhone bits on my desk, and wanted to point out some design details in the PACKAGING. (and as for my take on the UI, the verdict is still out, and part of me wants to return it, although its growing on me.)

So first thing… did you notice that on top of the over dramatized shadow on the only button on the front of the iPhone… the designers actually bothered to have an actual indentation where that button is on the cover of the box? The whole phone is extruded as well, but that is even more subtle than the button… More silly packaging design gushing below.

Wait - before we look at how fun this looks, lets start with the name. Wine Ratchet Magnum. Doesn’t that make you want to play with it already? This is the “coming soon” latest in crazy corkscrews from Built NY (yes the neoprene everything cases guys).

“A travesty has fallen upon the world of wine, It has lost the beloved “POP” that gets one salivating in anticipation of a tasty treat. Well, for those wishing to forgo the mechanical levers and tricks, a new day has dawned. Our corkscrew makes opening a bottle of wine as much fun as emptying it.”

iPhone. Yes, we’ve all been inundated with the video a day leading up to launch, then launch lines, waits on activation, etc etc etc… so i’ll assume you’ve gotten your hands on one by now (seeing as hardly any stores are sold out) and have played with it enough to have a feel for what is and isn’t working with the tactile UI. So next question? What’s your iPhone wearing?

Did my rounds on on the options available and decided on the Belkin Remix Case… for now. It’s brilliant really, super sleek simple acrylic case, all clasps are optional (so when it lives in my purse its protected just enough), and when i choose, i can snap on the panel on the back with the rotating belt clasp that doubles as a stand! So yes, you can work at your desk and have it propped up for youtubing and ipoding nicely (calling it what it is, the iPhone really is just a glorified iPod with some internet/email access at this point, i’m not giving up my pearl quite yet). And you can even mount the rubbery piece somewhere to hang your iphone… (does this mean it doubles as your digital picture frame too?)

Gah iPhone day!!! (Can you believe i held back from iPhone gushing this long?) And leave it to people to plan events on iPhone day…. SO i just rushed over to Daniel’s from the Federated Media Author Meetup on the penthouse of Hotel Vitale to gush over our new iPhones (yes we got two). The meetup was a great way to get to meet so much of the FM team/family in person like John Battelle and his lovely wife (who had the most incredible glasses we will have to NotCouture later), as well as catch up with some of the ladies from Sugar Publishing (Yum Sugar, Party Sugar!), Digg folks, Mena Trott (that this blog wouldn’t exist without), … ok and so many more, but for now, just wanted to give you the quick update, while i go find some much needed food. Few more shots of the iphone madness below… and um, i was a skeptic, but its pretty sweet.

One of the most inspiring things is still nature, between all the jaw dropping art and design i see daily, sit me at the beach and i could watch the birds and ocean for ages… you know exactly what i mean (if not, go rent some Planet Earth in HD or something, and i feel very sad for you). Anyhow, that being said, and just to mix things up a little here to regain some perspective before we go back to traditional design content… a few weeks back when i was over at the Revl Industries showroom, i met Toni Gorog and learned about this interesting project she’s working on in Indonesia and below are some images of the photography from the event as well:

June 2nd, the Revel Industries showroom in SF was hodge podge of Indonesian dangdut music, great Mondavi wines, margaritas by Angelita, and spicy Mexican snacks. The hip workspace/office—home of Headline Shirts, Gytha Mander, and Revl—was transformed into a classy photo gallery of pix by Erick Danzer featuring the faces of Indonesia and the biodiversity of the world’s largest island archipelago. The benefit fundraiser was held to support the work of the non-profit Health In Harmony in rural Indonesia. HIH’s mission is to improve both human and environmental health in West Kalimantan, one of the country’s poorest provinces. Using health care discounts at their new medical clinic as an incentive, the 501(c)(3) works with communities around Gunung Palung National Park, a stronghold for one of the few remaining populations of orangutans, to protect the park from illegal logging. The NGO also offers local people ecologically-friendly work opportunities, such as organic farming and reforestation, to cover health care costs. See Health In Harmony for more information and keep your eyes open for future events at Revel to support Health In Harmony’s medical/conservation program in Indonesia.

Illu Stration by Mary-Ann Williams, the “Queen of Felt” has a gorgeous wine bottle - handbag - insulator “tipsy bag”. Its a nice detail how the zipper runs up the strap, and would make a nice hostess gift or a nice way to tote a bottle of wine around for that picnic, etc.

Polly George has some gorgeous ceramic lines designed and made in Kent, which are unlike any other. She’s the designer behind the Mr & Mrs Jones lemon and lime squeezers we’ve seen around for some time. I just spotted the Butterflies series at Oh Joy, and they actually first reminded me of the Mixko rings… Things to pay attention to? The crazy toast rack, butter dish, adorable egg and soldier stand and cake stand. Also, the site is designed with enormous background images (large like 4500 width)… so some snippets of pieces i liked below, but check out Polly’s site here to see more.